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Over dinner and drinks, Angelo Comsti spoke to seven chefs as they compared notes on the state of the industry and their takeaways from the pandemic experience
Chefs must be some of the most patient and resilient people in the world. Their capacity to endure is continually tested. It became more apparent and trying during the recent pandemic when they were held up against the wall and made to decide on the most challenging questions, from letting go of people, to shutting down their businesses.
On their day off, chefs Thirdy Dolatre and Kevin Navoa welcomed colleagues and friends Josh Boutwood (Ember, Helm, Savage, The Test Kitchen), Nicco Santos and Quenee Vilar (soon-to-open Celera), Raul Forés (Mamou, Nokal) and Marie Jo Camarista (Niu by Viking) to their restaurant Hapag. On the table was a spirited conversation about the year that was and the best things to come out of it—themselves included.
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How are you guys getting by? How was 2022 for you?
Thirdy Dolatre (TD): As with other fine-dining establishments, we’re doing better, numbers-wise, compared to pre-pandemic. At Hapag, we can now focus on what we want to do: fine dining and showcasing Filipino food on a higher level.
Kevin Navoa (KN): Yes, we’re doing very well. The pandemic gave us so much spare time, so we used that to improve. The past two years have been good to us. We were able to focus on ourselves and the menu. And I would say that Hapag exceeded our expectations, making us very happy.
Josh Boutwood (JB): That first year was rough. The amount of work we had to do to survive was intense. We are not just cooking but also pulling off weekend specials, etc. But we did it. All my restaurants remained open, and I’ve even opened new ones. I believe it’s because we’ve learnt so much during the pandemic in understanding the business and adapting fast but safely. It has also improved our numbers because we’ve now been able to manage our labour costs much better, and people have become more resilient in terms of having to do more multitasking. We’ve trained people better during the pandemic. All of these add up to a very strong restaurant business thriving today.
Marie Jo Camarista (MC): 2022 has been challenging but exciting because I saw many chefs flourish. We have realised that every chef has the resilience and passion for being patient. I value my chefs now more than before.
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Glad to know that everyone’s coming out of it slightly bruised but still game to fight. I don’t know if it’s an effect of the pandemic, but I’m seeing more and more chefs doing private dining and prix fixe menus. Nicco, what made you decide to enter this arena?
Nicco Santos (NS): Fine dining was never in my plan. It just happened towards the end of Hey Handsome when we collaborated with chefs abroad. What inspired me to continue towards this path was seeing my staff empowered. It’s quite different if you’re working because of your team. At the same time, when we travelled abroad, I realised that our food pairs well with other chefs’ food and is as good. I’m doing it for personal growth and to inspire my team.
Becoming a major cause of concern among many food establishments here and abroad is the difficulty of finding people who are as diligent as the ones who stayed behind.
Raul Forés (RF): I’m sorry (to say), but the younger chefs are just a lot softer now. They are more sensitive and more emotional. There is a culinary school well known for the rough and tough way they teach their students. But it prepares them for the industry.
MC: Students think everything’s going to be easy. It’s not.
KN: They think it’s glamorous, but they don’t know it’s hard work. The two years of the pandemic were hell; even if you wanted to, you couldn’t just cry.
JB: The youth of today must find a place where they fit. I’m very determined to aim for a perfect result. But the environment I create inside the restaurant is, I think, why I’ve succeeded in having high staff retention. I do not cater to them, and they’re able to adapt.
See also: The importance of great service in F&B
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In that regard, how important is it to have a mentor in the industry? Someone who can give you training wheels on your crazy wild ride?
Quenee Vilar (QV): Nicco and I have been working together for maybe almost ten years, but it feels like 20 already. You need to have the right mentor. In our case, I never felt like I was inferior. No one in our team feels Nicco is above us. But, it is crucial to have a mentor. It helped me achieve and realise the cuisine I want to focus on and the direction I want to take. Also, it helped me achieve the core values I want for myself and the team I’m building. I’m glad someone is honest, telling me about my lapses and what I need to improve. To be my best self, it’s great to have someone pushing me to leap higher.
So, let’s flip the coin now. What’s something good to come out of the pandemic?
RF: Many people are dining with a vengeance, even eating the most random food. For the longest time, some people were like; it’s expensive there. Let’s go somewhere else. Now, it’s like, life is short. Let’s eat because I don’t know if I will have this next week.
JB: I think I’m more appreciative of my team. We’ve become a family and so much stronger as a unit. We haven’t lost anybody. I couldn’t be more grateful for that.
See also: What is chaos cooking?
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There are chef societies and groups, but there is still a disconnect between parties. I wish that the veterans, be they restaurants or chefs, played more of an active role in bridging the gap. Or is this asking too much?
KN: This is a crucial topic. In 2019, Thirdy and I were starting, and Josh reached out, saying he wanted to cook with us. We were nobodies three years ago. You helped us.
JB: You were not a nobody because I heard about you, so I called you.
KN: Well, you still helped us. We learnt from the amount of time we spent with you. You gave us exposure. Fast forward five years, and we have kids from culinary schools opening restaurants. How will we elevate the whole industry in the country if we do not support each other? I heard Singapore is doing this. It’s just very different here. It’s very competitive.
JB: Competition is competition because two people are on the same road. But it’s up to us to define which direction we’re going. The young generation—and I’m speaking as a veteran now—need not copy what other people are doing. A young chef can see success in what somebody is doing and think that is the way to go. Don’t do that. But use that as inspiration and figure out your path. Don’t follow the same trajectory as the other. You could probably go parallel but never be on that same path.
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RF: I’m not saying that we should do more collaborations inside kitchens. Define the word collaboration—it’s to help each other. And it can be done in many ways, from mentoring to conversations like this.
JB: I think, I’ve aged so much during the pandemic. I feel it. We are in this industry to ultimately make money. And I hope we can all work together to create more choices for guests to level up our standards. To be, you know, rivalling other Asian cities like Hong Kong, Bangkok, or Singapore. The government’s not going to do it for us, nor the chefs’ group on Viber. We as individuals must collaborate to make that happen, and new people must be coming into the restaurants to improve the industry.
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Photography: JV RABANO
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